Mutant Benders
by MisfitGirl13
Summary: Avatar/X-Men Evo. Katara and Zuko get transferred to Bayville. They must find allies to help them get back. The X-Men try to figure out where they are from. Meanwhile the Gaang trys to prevent a rebellion. Eventual Zutara and Romy.
1. The Journey Begins

**So some AN before I begin. This story is a Cross over and I hope I do it in a right way. The Avatar-verse is slightly AU. They won the war but Katara is still mad at Zuko. And no pairing ended except Sukka. Remy is not in the X-Men yet…With that let me just put a little disclaimer:**

**I do not own any characters/settings in this story**

The Journey Begins

Zuko looked out at the sun as it slowly dipped below the horizon. It was gold in color and left a soft orange glow on all the things it touched with its gentle rays. Zuko looked at his surroundings. There was a fountain in the middle of the garden where turtle-ducks gathered. There was a tree beside the fountain and a bench under it. The courtyard was surrounded on three sides by the palace and on the fourth side was an open field used for bending and picnics. He sat on the bench which had dragons as legs.

The war was over, and he, Zuko, was to be crowned Fire Lord in three days time. It seemed that the war had taken its toll on every corner of the world, and yet it had overlooked the palace. This place was not scarred in any way, shape, or form. Everything should have felt right for Zuko. And yet, nothing felt right.

Sure he was friends with Avatar Aang, and Sokka and he could make jokes together about lame things. And sure Sukki forgave him for burning down her village and invited him to her and Sokka's wedding in six months. Yes, Toph had gotten him back for burning her, and Iroh forgave him and said he was like his son. But one person was missing in the equation.

Katara.

She had not forgiven him for anything. The war was already won, and she could not find it within herself to let the past go. It simply would not do for her. These feelings of shame and regret had yet to leave Zuko and they made both his blood boil and his heart ache for something he desperately wanted: her forgiveness.

Katara watched as Zuko sat on the bench in front of the fountain as the setting sun left a tiny tint of orange behind him. She walked over to him, hands on her hips, and her eyes full of passion. She saw him sit up straighter at her arrival.

"Dinner's ready," she said harshly.

Zuko sighed, but did not move from his seat. He stayed staring at her with golden orbs that he called eyes. Her eyes faltered for a second before they became fierce again.

"Did you not hear me? I said dinner was ready," she said with an ounce more attitude than last time.

He still stayed glued to his chair, "Why did they send you to tell me? There are servants for this kind of thing."

Katara took a step back. He was being rude to her? He was _never _rude to her.

"Well, sorry, dear Prince, but the servants are busy, and so is everyone else. Do you honestly think I would go out of my way to tell you _anything_," she said, her entire sentence dripping with sarcasm.

Zuko looked to his right, just to avoid looking into her eyes which were still filled with disdain even after a year from the Ba Sing Se betrayal. He sighed, and did not move from his chosen position.

"Why do you hate me so much?" he finally asked to the ground to his right. Katara, however, knew he was not directing his question to the ground, but rather to her.

"Because it's all I can do for me," she answered.

He looked back at up her. She had her arms crossed now and her eyes were still staring him down and she had the expression of a wolf-bat that had not eaten in three weeks. It was angry.

"But the war is over…" Zuko started, but Katara cut him off.

"Well, it would have been over a lot sooner if you hadn't betrayed us."

Zuko restrained from rolling his eyes with great difficulty. He managed to shut them and make it look as though he had caught a sudden headache. He stood up and was now slightly above the waterbender he wanted so dreadfully to call 'friend.' He looked down at her and she returned the gaze.

"You're still with that? How many times do I have to apologize? I was stupid and I just…"

"You just decided to betray me?" she asked.

Zuko noted the use of the word 'me' rather than the 'us' he had become accustomed to hearing when this argument ensued. He decided to point this out, which probably wasn't the best idea.

"Only you?"

Katara's eyes instantly filled with fire and her eye brows narrowed into two slanted slits. Her frown deepened and turned into a grimace of anger.

"Yes," she said, "me. Aang was hurt, Sokka and Toph were devastated. And I…was betrayed."

Zuko stepped forward, "Katara, I…"

"I don't care, Zuko. I will never forgive what you did," she said and turned her body to face the fountain.

Zuko picked his arm and hesitated to touch her shoulder. His arm hovered in midair before he decided it was not worth the risk of being water-whipped. He let out a low sigh. He had spent months trying to make it up to the girl before him, and all of his efforts had been vain.

"Katara," he started and then noticed a blue glow coming from the fountain water. His sentence changed its course, "What are you doing?"

Katara stared at the glowing water before them, "I'm not doing anything," she said her voice a little panic stricken.

The water began to glow more brightly and it started to boil. The water then snaked out of the fountain and grabbed both Katara and Zuko by the ankles.

"Katara quit it! I won't try to get you to talk to me ever again!" Zuko shouted to her.

Katara struggled to bend the water back into the fountain, but to no avail. It seemed as though the water was doing this on its own accord. It continued to drag them into the fountain and neither one of them could get it to stop.

"Zuko try to firebend us out of this," Katara said, although she felt she already knew what the result would be.

Zuko tried to cut the water off with his fire, but the water did not falter in its movements. It continued to drag them.

"Katara, I…"

They were in the fountain, and although the water was boiling, it felt cold. Then they were dragged under, and under, and under…_This fountain can't be this deep_, thought Katara.

Suddenly they were falling through and then all was dark.

XXXXXX

Zuko pushed himself up off the ground with his arm. He shifted from a face down position to a sitting position and squinted in the sunlight. He looked around the ground was paved and there were shops on either side of what looked like a road. Strange metal things were whizzing by on his left. He looked over to Katara and gently shook her. She groaned and hoisted herself up into a sitting position as well.

"Where are we?" she asked as she shielded her eyes from the bright sunlight.

Zuko stood up. He had no idea. "The Spirit World, maybe?" he suggested.

Katara stood up too and shook her head, "No, there's no way _this _is the Spirit World."

They shrugged and began walking. About ten steps into their walk, they heard a siren and saw red and blue flashing lights. They stopped, unaware of what was going on. Two men dressed in navy blue approached them from one of the metal things that were zooming on the street. One was bigger and the other was very skinny with a mustache.

"What are you kids doing here?" the bigger man asked.

Zuko looked between Katara and the new man. What was he supposed to say? "Uhh…I'm not sure?"

The big man narrowed his eyes at Katara and Zuko, "Why are you dressed like that?"

Zuko opened his mouth and then closed it again, he was about to ask the man the same question. His clothing did not correspond with any nation.

"Brown," said the skinny man, "we should just get them to the school and get on with it."

The big man nodded his head, "How old are you?"

"17," Zuko said as Katara answered, "15."

"Alright, then you belong at the high school. Get in the car," he pointed to the metal machine and the two teenagers climbed into the backseat. The siren began to ring again and Zuko looked out of the window. They were going fast, the fastest he had ever traveled as a matter of fact. In what seemed like minutes, they were across town and getting off at a rather large building.

The building itself wasn't that special, and the grounds were indeed very green. On the trees was an occasional carving of something like "J & S 4Ever" or "Class of 2009." The two men lead Zuko and Katara into the halls of the building and to a door that read "principal."

"Go on," said the man called Brown.

The two stepped into the room to find a middle aged man sitting behind a desk. He had grey stripes on either side of his head and glasses mounted on the bridge of his nose. He looked rather unfriendly as far as Zuko could tell.

"So, decided to play hooky?" the man asked.

Zuko looked at Katara and she did the same. Katara looked back at the man, "I've never heard of that, sorry."

The man's eyes narrowed at the two of them, but he did not continue the hooky talk. Instead he turned to another device that was square and glowing. He asked, "What grade are the two of you in?"

Zuko again shrugged slightly at Katara. Katara answered, "We'll I'm 15."

And then Zuko spoke for the first time, "And I'm 17."

The man gave off a heavy sigh and then turned to the two before him. "Yes, but what _grade _are you in?"

Zuko and Katara shrugged simultaneously. The man behind the desk looked back at the glowing box and asked, "Then when are your birthdays?"

"The fourth day of the second month in the winter cycle," Katara answered.

The man raised an eyebrow, "Ok, then, January 4th. And you?"

Zuko breathed in and said, "The 17th day of the third month of the summer."

The principal raised an eyebrow again, "Alright then, August 17th. So you Miss…?"

"Katara," Katara answered.

"Katara," the principal continued, "you are a sophomore, and Mr…"

"Zuko," Zuko said.

"Zuko, you are a senior. Here are your schedules. I do not believe I've introduced myself. I am Principal Kelly. Welcome to Bayville High." He ushered the two teens out of his office when the bell rang. Students filled the hall. Katara looked at Zuko and shrugged and they got lost in the sea of people.

XXXXXXXX

_Earlier that Day_

"Rogue watch your back!" Cyclops yelled from behind the building.

A fight had broken out between the two X-Teams and Rogue was engaged with the new mutant Psylocke. Rogue threw a right hook and Psylocke ducked and did a low kick that caught Rogue off guard. She fell but was quickly back on her feet. She kicked and hit Psylocke square in the jaw. Psylocke fell and rubbed her jaw, then she got back up and offered another punch directed at Rogue's gut.

The other fights had stopped and all attention was focused on the two girls with odd hair. Rogue dodged Psylocke's punch and tried to hit her with a punch of her own. Psylocke saw this coming and jumped in the air and kicked Rogue in the face. Rogue fell and Psylocke created a knife of psychic energy in her right hand and put it to Rogue's throat.

Rogue did not get up and the simulation was terminated. The teams that had assembled ran off to take a quick shower and get changed for school. Psylocke got rid of the knife and offered a hand to Rogue. Rogue pretended not to see her offer and got up on her own. Psylocke frowned. She had been here for a little less than a month, and Rogue already seemed to not like her.

She sighed and went to join her roommate, Emma on the other side of the Danger Room. Emma was not her friend per say, but she was the closest thing to it.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the room Rogue was walking towards Kitty who had seen what had happened between the two fighters.

"Like what was up with that?" she asked when Rogue caught up to her.

"What was up with what?" Rogue answered back.

Kitty rolled her eyes; she hated it when Rogue answered a question with another question, "Like with Betsy? Why didn't you let her help you up?"

Rogue brushed this off, "Didn' see her."

Kitty looked around the room and her eyes landed on the girl with purple hair, "Like, you're a bad liar, Rogue. So _why didn't you let her help you_?"

Rogue sighed as she pressed the up button on the elevator, "She's better than me."

Kitty stepped into the elevator after Rogue, "Like, what?"

Rogue stared at the numbers and letters as they changed from B to 1, "Ah'm not the best fighter any more. She got me."

Kitty rolled her eyes again, "Like what difference does that make?"

Rogue looked down on her short friend, "Maybe it doesn't matter ta ya, but ta me, it's the most important thing."

Kitty still did not understand why the girl next to her had to be the best fighter. She opened her mouth to ask again, what the big deal was, but Rogue beat her to the punch line.

"My powers aren't that useful to us, Kit. So Ah need ta be useful in another way. And that's by fightin', but if Ah'm not tha best, then it all seems pointless."

Kitty looked at her friend, "Your powers aren't…"

"Yeah, they are. And Betsy is a better fighter than me, so now Ah have ta train harder so Ah can beat her."

Kitty shook her head. There was no convincing this girl, and she knew it. Ever since Betsy had moved in Kitty could feel the tension between the two. And while it came mostly from Rogue, Betsy did give off a little too.

"There has to be more than, 'She's a better fighter than me,' Rogue," Kitty said as they opened the door to their room and Rogue grabbed a towel so she could take a quick shower.

"Kit, think about it. She's better at fighting, she was a _model_, and her brother is Captain _freaking _Britain,"she counted these things off on her hand and then continued, "How Ah am supposed ta compete with that?"

"Compete with that for what?" Kitty asked.

"Nothin'," Rogue answered as she walked into the bathroom.

XXXXXX

The mutant teenagers got to the school with two minutes to spare. They all raced to their classes and managed to make it to first period, which was uneventful.

When the bell rang for second period, however, Kitty found herself in front of the most unusual looking guy. And this was an X-Man who had been faced with a lot of unusual things in her short sixteen years of life.

He was tall, and had a shaggy haircut that fell lazily over his eyes, which were a gold color. Over his right eye was, as far as Kitty could tell, a burn that left a scar. This scar went all the way to his ear. He was also wearing a red shirt and pants with a red vest trimmed with gold. He looked out of place among all the blue jeans and T-shirts.

He stood next to a girl, who had to be his companion, considering she looked just as out of place. She was darker than her friend and had blue eyes that reminded Kitty of the sky. Her hair was brown and had…_hair loopies?_...which were connected to a bun type thing on the back of her head. The rest of her hair fell down in wavy lengths past her shoulders. She was wearing a blue dress with what looked like an ace on either side of the hem.

"Like, can I help you two?" Kitty asked politely.

The boy turned to her and looked down to his schedule. He seemed unsure as to answer her or not. Rolling her eyes at his actions, the girl stepped forward and addressed Kitty, "Yes, we seem to be…confused?"

Kitty nodded, "Here, let me see your schedule."

Thinking that "schedule" referred to the paper in her hand, the girl handed it over to Kitty.

"Ok," she said, "you have English right now, and that's right in here, actually. The Junior teacher is also the sophomore teacher."

The girl nodded, "Thank you. I'm Katara, by the way."

Kitty smiled, "Kitty," she said, "Nice to meet you. So, what's up with your friend?"

Katara turned to the boy. Kitty saw the eye roll and the gesture for him to join the two girls.

"His name is Zuko," Katara said, "He's confused too."

Katara went into the classroom Kitty had indicated and the latter went up to the boy whose name was Zuko.

"Need help?" Kitty asked.

"Yeah," he said, "I don't know how I got here."

Kitty gave him an odd look and said, "Let me see your schedule."

Zuko handed her the paper and she looked at it, "You have history next with me. Just follow me and you'll be fine."

She began to walk down the hall and decided to make small talk, "So, where are you from?"

Zuko looked down at her, "West," he said.

"Oh, like California?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said quickly.

They turned into a classroom to their left and Kitty sat next to the door and Zuko took the seat behind her. The teacher came in and told them to open their books to page 321. Kitty turned her page; it was the chapter on Chinese history.

"Now," said the teacher, "the character for fire was used," he began to draw a Chinese character on the board.

"That's not the character for fire," Zuko said from behind Kitty.

The teacher stopped talking and looked at his class, "What was that?" he asked.

"That's not the character for fire," Zuko repeated, "That's actually earth."

The teacher put his dry erase marker down and looked at the boy who was challenging him, "And did you live in ancient China?"

"Well, not but…"

"Then how would you know Mr…?"

"Zuko," Zuko said.

"Look, Zuko, just let me do my job, alright?" the teacher said as he continued to write out the symbol.

XXXXXXXX

At lunch Kitty found her friends, and decided that it might be a good idea to tell them what had happened.

"Guys," she said addressing Rogue, Kurt, and Bobby, "there are two new kids, and I really think that there's something up with them."

"What do you mean, Kitty," Bobby asked.

"Like in history today, Zuko, the new kid, totally challenged Mr. Smith about a Chinese character. And he seemed so positive he was right," she explained, "And like they aren't dressed normal."

Rogue looked around and spotted them at the cash station, "Kit, it looks like they're having trouble over there."

Kitty looked and went to help them out.

"What's the problem?" she asked.

"We, uhh…" Katara said, "don't have any money."

Kitty laughed and pulled out a five and handed it to the cashier.

"Thanks," Zuko said.

"Like no problem," Kitty answered.

XXXXX

Zuko and Katara sat by themselves.

"What are we going to do, Zuko," Katara asked in a concerned voice.

The two of them had barely managed the day and it was hardly lunch. They had only been able to get food by seeing how the other students did it. Not only that, but they had no idea what was before them, although the other students were eating it with no second thought.

"We'll have to try to find a way back, but until then I don't want to draw suspicion to ourselves. So we'll pretend to be like everyone else."

Katara poked the brown thing on her plate, "I don't like this."

XXXXXX

**Well, there is chapter one. I hope you liked it. Please review. I would really appreciate feedback since this is my first cross over and I want to know if it made sense or not so I know where to improve. Please review and thank you for reading. Till next time this is MisfitGirl13 signing off.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Yeah…so I don't own anything and I don't make money off of this, so no one should sue me. Thanks…**

Chapter 2

Sokka yelled for his sister, "Katara!" He wondered where she was. She had been missing since dinner, and as far as Sokka knew, she was missing with Zuko. Now, Sokka also knew of the fact that Katara had not forgiven Zuko for the whole betrayal thing. As it was, and he would never admit this out loud, he was more concerned for Zuko's safety than that of his sister.

"Katara!" he tried again to no avail. Toph and Aang came from the north end of the palace. They all gathered in the garden near the turtle duck pond. The two who had just shown up had grim frowns set in place. Obviously, they had had no luck finding the two MIAs.

"Sugar Queen and Sparky are no where in the palace," Toph told the other two. She had grown in the month or so they had been here. Not much, though, but some. She looked at Sokka and Aang through her blind eyes and could feel Aang's increased heartbeat. He, unlike Sokka, was not worried about Zuko.

"What do we do?" the young avatar asked to both. He traded glances between Sokka and Toph, neither one offering a sure expression nor an answer.

It was Sokka who spoke first, "I have a bad feeling about this whole situation, you guys. Something, and I'm not sure what, feels wrong."

"Oh, are your instincts kicking in, Sokka?" Aang asked and managed a half hearted smile at his own long forgotten joke.

Sokka looked up from his thought process, "I just have a feeling that Katara and Zuko will be gone for a while."

Toph stepped in and added, "There might be a rebellion if the throne of the Fire Nation stays empty. As it was, there were whispers of one even as Zuko was set to take the throne. We need someone to take it for now. Someone from his family…"

Sokka threw his hands up in shook and mild disgust, "We are _not _giving Azula the throne."

Toph rolled her sightless eyes, "I was thinking Iroh, Snoozles."

Sokka dropped his arms, "Oh, yeah…that makes more sense."

Aang stayed quiet during this exchange. His thoughts were on Katara. How could she leave? And more importantly, how could she leave with Zuko? Didn't she hate him? And why would Zuko leave when he had a whole nation to rebuild? It didn't make any sense.

"Where can we find Iroh?" Sokka asked and this broke through Aang's mind.

"He has his tea shop, _The Jasmine Dragon_ in the Earth Kingdom. He'll be there," Aang answered.

Sokka nodded, "Then that'll be our first stop. After we convince him to become the Fire Lord for a while, then we'll start the search for Katara and Zuko."

Toph sighed, and Aang looked down. They both had a feeling that they would not get far in their search.

XXXXXXXXXXX

The Jasmine Dragon was just as the gang had left it back when the war had first ended. The inside was still a pastel green color and the dragons on the carpet were still stitched in gold. There were many more workers, but despite the increase in employees, Iroh was still very easy to spot.

He was still big, though not as big as he had been before the war had found its way to the Southern Tribe. His hair was braided down his back and his beard was shaped in the traditional Earth Kingdom style. The only thing that gave him away was his golden eyes and the way he was heating up the pots of tea: with his own hands.

The trio that had come to seek him out were easily identifiable as well. After all, although the war was over, one hardly saw three people from different nations traveling together.

Iroh spotted them quickly, and shuffled around tables, customers, and waiters to the entrance where they were standing. He held his hand out to Aang who took it, then to Sokka, and finally to Toph.

"What brings you three out here today?" he asked happily.

It was not until he saw Aang's expression that his smile fell.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Sokka was the one to answer, "We have a couple missing."

XXXXXXXXXX

_Meanwhile_

"Katara, I'm not sure if this is the best idea."

Zuko sat outside of the small clothing store. Katara had just come out with a bag of, apparently stolen, items. He peered inside the bag she had taken with a little skill of her waterbending. She had simply activated the triggers on the strange sprinklers on the ceiling. When everyone was running out she took the bag of paid items from the counter. She had left some Water Tribe money on the counter, due to her conscience. However, neither one of them thought that it would make any difference.

"What more can we do, Zuko?" she asked as he got up off the ground, "We have no money that will work here, and our clothes aren't exactly in style. We stick out. And I have a feeling we'll be here for quite a while."

Zuko nodded in contempt. He hated the idea of having to stay in this strange world. When was something normal going to happen?

The pair walked down the street past several shops that proclaimed, "COFFEE" and "OPEN" in bright colors that glowed. The sun had gone down on their first day. They turned down an alley and found that it was empty. They sighed in relief. Although they had not discussed it, it seemed to be a mutual decision to not use their bending in front of these people.

"Should I start a fire?" Zuko asked as he settled on the ground.

The sky let out a thunderclap and lightning soon followed. It was strange that a storm was approaching. The sky had been clear earlier. It was not long after Zuko lit the fire that rain began to fall. Katara swiftly waterbended the water away creating an umbrella out of her bending.

"What did you manage to get?" Zuko asked.

Katara reached into the bag. She pulled out a blue cotton dress and a pair of jeans. The dress looked like it would fit her, and it looked like Zuko could squeeze into the jeans. There was no extra shirt for Zuko though.

"Hmmm," Katara mused, "Well, at least we'll blend in a little better."

"What I want to know," Zuko said as he placed the jeans back into the bag, "is what this woman was doing buying a girl's dress and men's pants."

Katara shrugged, "What difference does it make? We'll fit in a little better tomorrow." She sighed and decided that she was tired. It had been a very strange day after all. "I'm going to bed." She said.

Zuko nodded. He gave the fire a little more juice before Katara stopped using her "umbrella" of waterbending.

XXXXXX

_At the X-Mansion_

All had assembled for dinner. Rogue sat next to Kitty who sat across from Betsy. The girl with the purple hair kept staring at Rogue. This constant action of not blinking was starting to annoy Rogue. She was about to ask what Betsy's problem was, exactly, when the professor got to the table and dinner began.

Among all the chatter, Kitty looked at the professor meaningfully. Charles did not have to be a physic to understand that Kitty had something to say.

"What is it, Kitty?" he asked kindly.

Kitty looked up from her plate. She hadn't wanted to say anything in front of the whole mansion.

"I think that there are two new mutants at school, Professor," she said quietly.

The talking stopped and everyone's eyes went to Kitty. She didn't like the attention from everyone very much but decided it was crucial to continue with her story.

"They're different professor," she said, "very different. I ran into them today. I seriously think they might have abilities."

The professor searched Kitty's eyes and saw nothing but honest concern. She truly believed that new mutants were residing within Bayville and wanted to be proven correct. He tilted his head slightly and rested a hand on his chin.

"What makes you think that exactly, Kitty," he asked the young mutant.

"Both of them were not wearing anything from around here, but they both spoke perfect English. Then the boy corrected our history professor about an ancient Chinese character," Kitty said.

"Kit," Rogue interrupted, "we already said that the boy might have been mistaken."

Kitty shook her head, "No I don't think he was. Professor, it's not only that, but their names are strange as well."

"What are their names?" asked Betsy, mush to Rogue's chagrin.

"The girl is Katara, and the boy Zuko."

Professor Xavier nodded his head. If Kitty really believed these newcomers to be mutants he would indeed welcome them into this home…If they were mutants at all.

"If you can get them to admit they have abilities," the professor said, "then by all means, welcome them into our home."

Kitty nodded enthusiastically. That shouldn't be hard.

XXXXXXXXXX

Iroh, Sokka, Toph, and Aang started their journey back to the Fire Nation. The four talked about the possibility of an uprising since their soon to be Fire Lord decided to go missing with a Water Tribe noble.

"Rebellion sounds like a very strong possibility," Iroh confided, "I just hope I can stop it for my nephew's sake."

Aang nodded his head in agreement; as mad as he was at Zuko, an uprising would be bad for the avatar, and Aang didn't want Zuko hurt.

"We should make a stop at the Boiling Rock," Iroh suddenly stated.

"What for," asked Sokka.

"We should make sure that Azula is still there," Iroh replied.

No one said anything back.

Since the end of the war, Azlua had been placed at the Boiling Rock Prison. There she was kept under heavy guard, and no one was allowed to see her. She hadn't had her firebending removed by Aang, and therefore was still very dangerous. Crazy though she was, lightning was lightning.

"You don't think…" Toph started, but Aang had already turned Appa back in the direction of the prison.

XXXXX

The bell rang for lunch and Katara and Zuko, once again, found themselves poking their food rather than consuming it. It was not until Katara noticed Kitty, her new friend, walk over to them, that the duo stopped poking what they were to be eating.

"Hey Kitty," Katara said.

Zuko simply nodded to the mousy haired girl and got up to throw away his untouched tray. Kitty watched him go, and then she turned back to the girl sitting in front of her.

"So," she said, trying to sound casual, "where were you and Zuko from again?"

Katara smiled and said kindly, "Just not here."

Kitty nodded. She wasn't sure how she was to approach this. It was a very difficult thing for her to wrap her mind around. She glanced at her table which consisted of Rogue with a smile on her face. "Just ask," she mouthed and gave Kitty a thumbs up.

"Look," Kitty said suddenly, "Can you or Zuko…do things?"

Katara looked up from her thoughts that had much to do with back home, "Do things? Like what?"

Kitty lowered her voice, "Like can you _make things happen_?"

Katara started shaking her head, "I don't know what you're talking about. Can you give me an example?"

Kitty sighed. She hadn't wanted this to be so hard. "Look, I can walk through walls."

"What?" Katara asked as her blue eyes widened.

"Watch," Kitty said. She picked up Katara's tray. It lay flat on her palm; the tray rested there for a good three seconds. It seemed to Katara that Kitty was trying to prove it really was staying there. Then, in the blink of an eye, the tray fell through Kitty's hands and clattered onto the table before them.

Katara;s eyes widened in shock. _How did she do that? _Katara asked herself. She looked up at Kitty and was met with a smile.

"So," Kitty said, "can you do anything?"

Katara started to shake her head, "No not like that."

Kitty leaned forward, "What do you mean?"

Katara lowered her voice and cocked her head towards Kitty's usual table, "Can your friends do things like that?"

Kitty nodded her head, "Yeah of course. Some of us can teleport from place to place. Others can heal fast. Some can control the elements…"

Katara mouth opened in shock, "Elements?" She asked in a small voice, "What do you mean?"

Kitty nodded, "Storm can create…well storms. She commands the weather."

Katara nodded; that was not what she had in mind when Kitty said, "elements."

"…And then there's Pyro, he can control fire," Kitty said.

Katara looked up again. One could control fire?

"How does he do this?" she asked Kitty.

"Well," Kitty said, "he can control it, but he can't create it. He has to have a fire already present, you see."

"What about water? Can anyone manipulate water?" Katara asked.

"Well, Iceman can create ice, and as I said, Storm can summon great rain," Kitty said. "Why do you ask?"

Katara looked around to make sure Zuko was not around, "I can control water. I can bend it to my will."

Kitty's eyes sparkled with excitement, "Really? What about Zuko? Can he do anything?"

Katara nodded, "He can create and control fire."

Kitty clapped her hands in delight. "This is wonderful," she said, "You two must come and stay at the school!"

Katara shook her head, "I will talk to Zuko about it, but I won't guarantee you anything."

Kitty nodded her head. "Okay. Talk to him and let me know what he says. You guys will love it there. Everyone is a mutant, and you'll be a part of our family. Please, Katara, take this offer seriously."

She then walked away and went to her own table. At the same time, Katara noticed Zuko was on his way back. This was going to be hard to explain.

XXXXXX

**End chapter two! All comments, questions, and suggestions are welcomed through reviews. I'm also sorry it took so long. If you are one of my regular readers you know I go through my phases where I just don't write for like ever…Yeah. Sorry about that again…**


	3. Chapter 3

**Here is chapter three of Mutant Benders. Please ENJOY!!  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything…Not even this computer…=(**

Chapter Three

Zuko dumped the untouched food into the trashcan. He placed the tray on the conveyer belt that would take it to the kitchen for washing. After that, he turned around to walk back to his table when he almost ran into another being. The accident was avoided thanks to both parties' unusually fast reflexes.

"Sorry," he said as he watched the girl continue on her journey to the trashcan. She turned around and noticed that the girl had stunningly beautiful Asian features, though she spoke with an accent that he did not know was British.

"Oh," she said and slung her purple straight hair behind her shoulder, "It's alright. No harm done."

He smiled at her. She seemed nice. "I'm Zuko," he said.

She smiled even wider upon the introduction, "Betsy," she said and held her hand out which he took graciously, "You're the new kid, right?"

He smiled and said, "Yeah. It's tough fitting in around here."

She nodded, "I know what you mean. I was the new kid up until you and your girlfriend showed up."

Zuko turned to look at Katara who was engrossed in a conversation with the girl, Kitty. "Katara, isn't my girlfriend. We just so happened to both get stuck here," he said rather sadly.

"Oh," Betsy said, "Sorry about that. Kitty told us that she thinks you and Katara would be interested in maybe coming to live with us?" Betsy asked in an attempt to change the subject. It worked.

"Live with…" Zuko began, confused.

"Oh, I should explain myself," Betsy said, "I live in a boarding house. Kitty mentioned last night at dinner that you and Katara should come live with us, maybe. I'm sure she's telling Katara about us right now."

Zuko nodded his head. A place to live would be a good idea. No longer would they have to battle the elements to stay alive, and shelter would reduce their chances of being caught bending.

"Will you consider it?" Betsy asked breaking him from his train of thought.

"Living with you and the others in that house?" Zuk asked and was met with a nod from Betsy, "Maybe. I don't see the harm in it."

Kitty then got up to go back to her table leaving a convinced looking Katara in her wake. Betsy then said, "You should get back over there. I'm sure Katara has a lot to tell you. Be sure to consider us. It would be a nice addition to the family."

Zuko nodded and then headed over to his table. Katara was still staring at the spot Kitty had vacated which Zuko filled. "What was that all about?" he asked.

Katara took in a breath. Zuko could tell she was nervous about something. Could it be what Betsy said? But why would that make the waterbender nervous? They were just some nice folks that were extending a hand to help the two newcomers…right?

"Kitty was talking to me about the place she lives," Katara said, "I think we would fit in there, Zuko."

"Why do you say that?" he asked her interested.

"We wouldn't have to hide our bending," she answered slowly.

Zuko raised an eyebrow. Betsy had said nothing along those lines, "What do you mean we wouldn't have to hide our bending?"

Katara looked up at the young firebender, "Kitty said that there were others who could had…oh what did she say? _Make things happen_."

"Such as," Zuko asked in obvious shock.

"Kitty can walk through walls. And she told me of one who could control fire, but not create it. Then she said someone could create ice. Zuko," she said, "In that mansion, we wouldn't have to pretend we didn't have our bending. We could pass as…mutants."

"Mutants?" Zuko said, "There's something wrong with us?"

"No," Katara said, "It's what the people here call the ones who have powers, I suppose. Like how we're known as benders in our universe."

Zuko shrugged, "It doesn't sound like a nice term, that's all."

Katara rolled her eyes, "So, are we gonna do this? Can I tell her yes?"

Zuko let his eyes wonder to Betsy at her table. She was sitting by a pale girl with blonde hair and sparkly white eye shadow. She waved at him shyly before returning to the conversation at her table. Zuko smiled and said, "Yeah. Tell her, yeah."

XXXXX

The gang of four landed at the Boiling Rock prison when it was in full turmoil. Guards were running around shouting orders to one another, and prisoners were being forced back into their cells. Aang tried to find the warden, but failed. He settled for a guard who was forcing prisoners into their cells.

"What's going on?" he asked the guard.

"Avatar Aang," said the guard with a slight squeak in his voice, "You have come at a very inconvenient time. There has been…a…" he seemed to struggle to find the right word, "_breach_," he decided, "in security."

"A breach?" Aang asked.

"Someone escaped," said another guard who was running past.

"Who was it?" Iroh asked as he came forward with a terrified look on his old face.

The guard looked at the floor before answering, "Princess Azula."

XXXXX

"Kitty," Katara called after the bell rang for classes to resume, "Kitty, Zuko said we could move in. When can we?"

Kitty put her hand to her chin in thought, "Well do you have to pack right?"

Katara gave Kitty a very puzzled look, "Pack? What would we pack?"

Kitty gave a little "oh" of surprise and said, "Well in that case, meet up with me after school. You and Zuko can move in right away."

Katara nodded her understanding and went to her fifth period. Kitty, who had Zuko for Art next period, went down the hallway and turned into a classroom on her right. She found Zuko quickly and took a seat next to his. He paid her no attention until the teacher walked in and began talking about vanishing points.

"Katara told me that you two would be moving in," Kitty said to the boy next to her. He grunted something that Kitty took as an affirmative, and then she went on to say, "Meet after school in the front. You can come live with us right away."

XXXXX

_Meanwhile at the X-Mansion_

Ororo, Logan, and Hank watched the man many looked up to create a steeple with his hands. Charles looked disturbed about something, and it was because of his finding that the three mentors sat in his office.

"I am aware that you all know that Kitty is extending an invitation to two new students," he waited until the three in front of him nodded their understanding, "I have some news about that. It appears that Cerebro cannot detect any new mutant activity."

Logan remained expressionless and Ororo added, "But that does not mean anything, Professor. Sometimes Cerebro cannot pick up on mutants unless they are using their powers. You can easily locate any of the X-Men, but that is because you are so attuned to us already."

Hank nodded his agreement, but Logan finally decided to put in his own two cents, "Are you trying to say that these new kids might not even be mutants despite Half Pint's assurance, Chuck?"

Charles merely shook his head, "Kitty contacted me. She said the two students will be arriving after school. If they do have abilities, then by all means, we will test them."

Logan nodded his head, "You're not thinking of putting them on the team are you?"

Charles let out a sigh; Logan can be quite assertive when he wants to be. "It depends," Charles explained, "If the two new students have adequate control over their powers, then by all means I will ask them to join the team."

"Chuck," Logan said, "with all due respect, we don't know anything about these kids. You said you weren't even sure if they're mutants at all. And a simulation is one thing, what if they can't hold their own in a real fight?"

Charles sighed yet again, "We will deal with that tonight, Logan."

XXXXX

The final bell rang and the students of Bayville high rushed out like a herd of cattle. Zuko almost forgot he was supposed to meet Kitty and Katara at the front of the school. However, he was reminded of his appointment by an overly excited Kitty outside of his classroom.

"You ready?" she asked happily.

Zuko saw that Katara was already with the small girl and nodded. The trio soon found themselves outside. There was a black van waiting for them. Inside it, Zuko found several other people, including the girl, Betsy, he had met earlier that day.

There was a boy with blue hair who was messing with a band on his wrist, a girl with blonde hair and an ever bored expression on her face, a boy with brown hair and a goofy grin, and a girl with black straight hair and a yellow jacket.

Zuko smiled at Betsy and received a smile back; he also noticed that a girl with auburn and white hair grimace at the exchange made between Betsy and him. Kitty closed the door and said, "All set!"

The van came to life and soon they were at the mansion Zuko had heard so much about that day.

"Come on in," Kitty said waving to Katara and Zuko who simply stood outside the van, "the professor wants to meet you two."

XXXXX

The professor saw the new recruits immediately among the others he was so familiar with. As Ororo had pointed out, it was easy to spot the new students because he knew the others so well.

He wheeled himself over to the two youngsters and put a smile on his face, "Welcome to the Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters. I am Professor Xavier and this is Mr. Logan," he referred to Logan who was situated nest to him, "I hope you don't mind, but I would like to see your powers in action."

Zuko nodded his head, "Thank you for allowing us to stay here. We would be honored to show you our skills."

It was the first time Zuko really spoke to the people in this new world. Katara was so shocked she forgot to nod her head in agreement. Instead she followed Professor Xavier and Mr. Logan to an elevator that took them below the first floor. Kitty was tagging along and had a big smile on her face.

The doors opened and the party of five made their way past big metal doors. "This is the Danger Room," Professor Xavier explained, "This is where we will be testing your powers. I would like to see what you can do individually in a simulation before I see an actual fight or teamwork." He waited until the two students nodded their understanding, "Alright. Katara, I would like to test yours skills first."

He motioned for the others to follow him. Kitty, Zuko, Logan, and Xavier were in the control room above the Danger Room with Katara in the latter. "Katara," Professor Xavier said, "before we begin, do you need water in order to use your skills?"

Katara shook her head, "I can pull water from the air."

The professor's eyebrow rose along with Logan's. If she was able to do that already, then her powers must be very far along indeed. He then turned on the Danger Room to level one. He was not going to start off the new student on anything she couldn't handle.

Katara whirled her arms in the air, and a ribbon of water materialized and gathered into a ball which she stabilized between her hands. She took a fighting stance and said, "Ready," to the professor in the control room.

"Katara," Xavier said, "targets will appear. I simply want you to hit the targets as close to the center as possible."

Katara nodded her understanding and waited silently for the first target to appear. Zuko, meanwhile smiled to himself. If this was the extent of their test, then he and Katara would pass it no problem.

The first target appeared to Katara's left. She pulled out her left arm and straightened her hand making the water turn into icicles that hit the target dead center.

Xavier's mouth fell open in shock. He had not been expecting that. "Katara," he said, "the targets will now be moving. Please, try to hit them in the center again."

"Chuck," Logan said, "she only hit one. You already moving her up the scale?"

"Did you see what she did to the target?" Xavier asked him, "She is quite capable of hitting a still target."

Katara took out the moving targets just as easily as she had the still targets. "Katara," Xavier said again, "I will turn up the danger level a few notches. If it seems too difficult, just say something, and the simulation will be terminated."

Katara nodded her head and prepared herself as Logan said, "You think the boy's gonna be as good as the girl?"

Zuko heard this comment and smirked to himself. If they thought Katara was good with her bending wait until they see his!

Katara waited with the water formed into a ball. Then she heard something to her left. She quickly turned and saw nothing save for a red glow in the darkness. She waited; a card fell slowly to her and she noted that it was glowing with some type of energy. It was not a millisecond before the card exploded that she realized this guy was a threat.

She quickly threw both her arms out and hit the unknown attacker square in the chest. The impact caused the man to fall and fade away. She recalled the water with a wave of her hand and prepared herself for the next attack.

"Why is Gambit still on the program?" Xavier asked Logan in the booth.

"He's still an Acolyte." Logan responded offhandedly.

Xavier gave Logan on of those looks that lay somewhere between frustration and mild amusement, "Logan," he said, "Gambit as well as Colossus has…"

"Shhh Chuck," Logan interrupted, "watch what's going on."

Charles turned to see that Katara was pitted in a battle with Sabertooth, and the young lady was doing quite a job of holding her own. She sent an icicle at the man's head that would have killed him had he not moved at the last second.

"Katara," Xavier said, "I think that's enough." He turned to Zuko, "Is it safe to assume you can hit a still target?"

XXXXX

Logan watched as the two left the Danger Room. The kid called Zuko certainly gave Pyro a run for his money. He had displayed a sure discipline throughout his fight. He had made several fire balls, fire disks, and once used what he called "Breath of Fire."

Logan hated to be wrong, but it was painfully obvious, that despite the Cerebro not picking up two new mutants, these two were not normal by any standards. And those included his own.

"Chuck," he said to get the man's attention, "why is it that these two are able to fight in the Danger Room at a level that rivals the kids we've had here for years? Why can they control their powers, when they should have just found out about them?"

Charles shook his head. "I don't know Logan."

"And are you still thinking about putting them on the team?" Logan asked. He might be able to admit that he was wrong about them being mutants, but Logan still didn't was the new kids on his seasoned team. Although to be fair, the X-Men were _not _his team.

"Yes I am," said Charles.

Logan grunted something along the lines of, "Just because they can fight a hologram…"

The professor sighed, "If I get them to train with the team once, and have them fight a tangible person will you quit hounding me and just accept my decision, whatever it may be?"

Logan growled but agreed, "Yeah, whatever."

XXXXX

**A/N: **I just want to say that the next chapter will focus a little more on the Avatar-verse of this story. I feel like I have been neglecting that universe in order to make more time for the Evo-verse. That's not right, considering Azula is out and about over there…

Also, next chapter will have a face off between Katara and an X-Man and Zuko and an X-Man. I've already decided who I will have Katara fighting, but I am open to suggestions about Zuko. Please, just give me a name, and I will look into it. I will also note that Gambit is still in the program because Wolverine doesn't like him that much ;-) I will elaborate on the statement the professor started to make before being cut off in a future chapter.

Well, with all that nonsense out of the way, I would like to ask you, the reader, to drop me a line. Love it, Hate it, Don't have any feelings towards it one way or the other? Let me know what, why, when, and how I can improve! Press the review and let your voice be heard! (Well let your words be read at any rate…) (=


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter four of Mutant Benders (I am thinking of changing the name…I'll keep you posted)**

**Disclaimer: **Because even though I might own the X-Men and Avatar in an alternate reality, in this one I am inclined to say that I do not.

Chapter Four

"Azula's escaped?" Aang repeated, "What do you mean she's escaped? She can't have escaped!"

The guard shirked away from the Avatar's anger. He had expected this, but that was not the same as being prepared for it. The warden had hoped to high heaven that they would apprehend Azula before word got out that she had escaped. No such luck. Whether it was coincidence or not, the Avatar and the Fire Lord's uncle knew that the Fire Princess was gone.

"This is not wholly unexpected," Iroh said, "Not welcomed, but not unexpected."

"What do we do, Iroh?" Sokka asked with just the faintest hint of hysteria in his usually joking tone.

"We must get back to the Fire Nation," he answered, "Aang," Iroh continued, "we must get back to the capital. No doubt Azula will want to start trouble. For a nation to have no leader leaves room for plenty of upheaval."

Aang nodded, "Do you think the Fire Council will allow you to rule in Zuko's place? At least for now?"

Iroh sighed, "I am unsure. I hope so, but we must go now if there is any hope."

XXXXX

"Mai, Mai, Mai…"

Mai heard the chiming of her name and hoped that it was just a dream. She could not possibly be here in Mai's room. She was not chirping her name like a songbird, and she was at the Boiling Rock where she belonged. In a few moments the sun would rise and Mai would wake up from this nightmare. But it never happened.

"You are not dreaming, Mai," the voice said again, "I am here, and you are coming with me."

Mai sat up in her bed to look at the girl she never wanted to see again, "How are you even here?"

Azula laughed, and Mai felt a shiver run up her spine, "You really think that a boiling lake, your guards, and a lock would keep me away from what is rightfully mine? As much as I hate to admit it, I need you, Mai. You're crucial in my plot to take back my country. Ty Lee as well. We will need to find her soon."

Mai could barely believe her ears. Azula was really back, and she wanted to overthrow Zuko and everything that he and the Avatar had worked for. Mai, however, was not convinced.

"No, Azula. I have a new life. Zuko pardoned me, and I am not going to help you," Mai said.

Azula shot daggers at Mai with her eyes. "You make it sound like I'm giving you a choice, Mai."

Mai did not back down from the threat, "I know you're not, but I'm _not _helping you."

Azula laughed again, "I know what this is about." She looked at Mai, and Mai could swear she saw traces of pity in the amber eyes, "You're still in love with dear, Zuzu. Well let me tell you, Mai, he doesn't love you back."

Mai looked away. She knew it was true. After all, when he got back to the Fire Nation, he did not ask her to be his girlfriend again. He simply pardoned her and said that he understood she was a "Victim of Circumstance."

"That doesn't matter," she finally said, "I will not help you because the Fire Nation is better off without you."

Azula let another laugh out, "That might be true, but I'm not leaving without you. You _will _help me, Mai whether you want to or not."

"Why?" Mai asked, "Why would I help you?"

"Because," Azula said, "I will simply kill you if you do not."

Mai did not back down again. But she knew this was not a threat to take lightly from the princess. With a defeated look in her eyes, she got off of her bed and began to ask, "Where is Ty Lee?"

XXXXX

"Katara," Zuko yelled after they came out of the Danger Room, "wait up!"

Katara turned, and she saw Zuko running after her. Why was he always doing that? She realized she had been being nicer to him as of late, but honestly, he couldn't think he was forgiven that easily did he?

"So, we're staying here then, right?" he asked when he caught up to her in the "elevator."

"Yes," she said flatly hoping he would catch the hint. He didn't.

He stayed in the small room with her as the floor began to rise. She looked over at him and saw that he had a smile on his face. She was not sure if it was there because of her attitude towards him lately, or if it had to do with the fact that he got to show off his bending. Either way, she felt she had to clear a few things up with him.

"Zuko," she said.

Zuko looked at her when he heard his name. She continued, "I don't want you to think that any of this changes anything between us."

She saw his face fall slightly.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"I mean, I was only being civil with you because we were in a new world. We had no shelter, no allies, and no way of getting back. But now that we have two out of the three, I don't think I need to be acting like nothing ever happened anymore," she explained.

"So," he said, "you're basically telling me that you're going to start treating me like Appa dung again?"

She could tell he was getting angry, and she was too. How dare he act this way! He was the one who betrayed her after all. This ride to the first floor was starting to be too long for Katara's taste.

"Look," she said, "I'm not saying anything. I just don't want you to think that all is forgiven."

"You've got to be kidding me, Katara!" Zuko said obviously exasperated. "You're _still _with that?"

Katara's blue eyes blazed with anger, "Yes I am! I'm not about to let it go so easily. You should just get used to it, Zuko!"

With that the elevator doors _finally _opened, Katara stepped out. Zuko did the same about half a second later.

XXXXX

Zuko watched as Katara went upstairs with the girl named Kitty and the girl that had given him the odd look when in the X-Van. He paid none of the girls no mind and started to head for the door. He desperately needed to burn something and had the correct idea that he would not be permitted to burn anything inside the mansion.

"Hey," he heard someone say from behind him. He turned to see Betsy standing in front of him with a bowl and something melty inside it. It looked much like the frozen treat he had gotten for Mai on Ember Island. "Where're you going?" she asked before putting a spoonful of the refreshing looking treat in her mouth.

"Outside," he stated dumbly. Why could he never sound cool in front of girls?

She laughed, he decided that he liked her laugh. "Yeah I could see that," she said not unkindly, "What were planning on doing once you got outside?"

He smiled and said, "I want to practice my ben—control."

"Oh, you want to practice!" she said happily. "Mind if I watch?"

He smiled again at her. He was finding it very hard not to like this girl. "No," he answered.

Zuko held the door opened for her, and he was surprised to see a blush cross her face. Didn't boys in this universe show manners as well? He wasn't sure. Yeah he hadn't seen another boy open a door for a girl yet, but he was sure he would.

"So," Betsy said, "what can you do anyway?"

Zuko smirked. She had no idea what his power was. "I can manipulate and create fire."

He was happy when Betsy's eyes seemed to light up, "Really? Like Pyro only better, huh?"

He did not know who Pyro was, nor did he care. All that mattered to him was Katara was away, he was about to burn something, and there was a girl here that seemed genuinely interested in what he had to say.

"What about you?" he asked as he took a stance his uncle had taught him.

"Me?" she asked again, surprised it seemed, that he was asking about her.

"Yes," he answered unaware of the reason she was so shocked, "you."

He took in a deep breath and let out a fire ball from his right fist. It didn't go far since he did not want it to cause a scene or a ruckus from inside in the mansion. He was still waiting for her answer as he kicked and let a ring fire come from his left foot.

"I'm psychic," she finally said, "I have minimal telepathic abilities, and I am able to focus my psychic energies into blades and blasts. I call them psyblades and psyblasts. They call me Psylocke on the battlefield. When I use my telepathic abilities, a butterfly comes out on my face. It looks rather funny, or so I'm told."

Zuko stopped his work out to look at the girl in front of him. She was shorter than he was. She had purple hair and eyes that mirrored his own in their shape. Hers were green rather than gold, however, and held an innocence his lacked. She wore jeans and a shirt that did not hide her arms. It was easy for Zuko to think she was pretty. It was also easy for Zuko to see she was lonely.

He took a step towards her, and she did not back away. "Can I see the butterfly?" he asked gently.

She looked up at him with those green eyes and said, "That depends."

Zuko looked back at her curiously, "On?"

She sighed, "On whether or not you want me in your head." Upon his look of horror she quickly added, "I don't have to read your mind. I can, 'sit on the surface' if you will. I won't see anything if you don't want me to."

He nodded. However, Zuko didn't really understand what Betsy meant. She could "go inside his head?" This worried the boy.

As much as his mind did not want this almost complete stranger in his head, another part of him was screaming to allow her. She had, so far, been the only person in this world who was showing him some form of compassion, Katara included. There was also something about her that reminded Zuko of himself. The way she walked was with a slight limp; it was not a limp of physical injury, and is you never walked with it you not be able to see it.

It was the limp of self-loathing. Zuko could not see why the girl would dislike herself, but he decided it was best not to ask. It was because he saw himself in her that he decided to allow her to see the surface of his mind.

"Please," he said, "don't look in there."

He was happy when he saw her smile light up her face. She brought her hands up to his temple and placed her hands on either side of them. "I would normally tell you to close your eyes," she said, "But you want to see the butterfly. I promise this won't be long."

He watched in silence as she closed her eyes and began to concentrate. She was right when she said it would not take long. Not one second later did a pink butterfly appear on her face. It was beautiful. It looked almost transparent and covered her face much like a mask.

She reopened her eyes and took her hands away from his face. "What do you think?"

He smiled at her, "It was beautiful."

She smiled back. "Can I ask you another question?" she asked.

Zuko hesitated. This was about his scar. He just knew it. "Uhh…sure."

"How can you control your powers so well?"

Zuko smiled. That was not what he had been expecting.

XXXXX

_Meanwhile in the Mansion_

Katara followed Kitty up the stairs. The girl was presumably taking Katara up to her new living quarters. She was not disappointed when Kitty stopped in front of a door and walked in. Once in the room, Katara noticed three beds. Kitty's roommate was sitting on one, and Kitty took a seat on the one across from the other girl.

"Like that one is yours, Katara," Kitty said and pointed to the third bed on the farther side of the room, "Usually we only have two to a room, but I convinced the professor to let you stay with us. Rogue didn't mind. I hope you don't."

Katara smiled and walked over to her new bed. "Of course I don't. I'm Katara by the way," she introduced herself to the other girl in the room.

"Rogue," said the girl in an accent that Katara did not recognize at all.

"So," said the girl named Rogue, "I noticed that your boyfriend went off with Braddock."

Katara could tell that Rogue was not trying to be cruel on her behalf. She obviously had something against this Braddock person. However, she was mistaken in thinking that Zuko was her boyfriend. She should clear that up now.

"Zuko is _not _my boyfriend. I can hardly stand him," she said.

Kitty's eyes widened in surprise. "Like, you two aren't together?" she asked painfully confused.

"No, we're not," Katara answered.

"I think we all just assumed," Kitty said.

"I guess I can understand that. We were spending a lot of time together, but you have to understand, circumstances didn't give us much choice," Katara explained.

"So," Rogue said again, "why can't you stand the guy?"

"Yeah," Kitty chimed in, "he seems nice enough."

Katara rolled her eyes, "Yeah, but trust me. You can't trust Zuko."

"I'll take your word for it," Rogue said.

"Rogue," Kitty said suddenly, "I wanted to ask for a while, but what's up with you and Betsy. You seem to really not like her for some reason."

Katara watched the girl she barely knew for a reaction. She was disappointed. No emotion showed on the girl's face.

"I have no idea what you mean," she answered.

"Don't give me that! I know you don't like her, and I want to know why!" Kitty argued back.

Rogue shot a look that would kill at Kitty and Katara took instant notice. This Betsy person was not someone to be brought up in the presence of Rogue,

"I don't like her because she's just like another Jean Grey!" Rogue finally stated.

"What's wrong with Jean then?" Kitty asked.

"Nothing!" Rogue said again.

"Then I still want to know what your problem is!" Kitty said.

"Can we please not do this in front of our new teammate?" Rogue asked exasperated, and finally pointing out that Katara was indeed still in the room.

"Fine," Kitty agreed, "but this is not over, Rogue."

"Sorry about that, Katara," Rogue apologized, "Kitty just doesn't know how to drop things."

Katara nodded, "No problem."

XXXXX

_Later that week_

"I can't believe we're really doing this, Chuck," Logan said as he and Xavier walked into the Danger Room later that week. It was all happening too fast for Logan's tastes. These two new mutants show up and suddenly they're being asked to join the X-Men?

"You agreed to this Logan. We will see how the two fight against an actual opponent and then we will decide if they are good enough to join the team," Xavier replied calmly.

Logan let out a half angry and half defeated sigh. He had agreed to the terms Charles had given him. However, the feral man did not have to be happy about any of this. And he sure as hell wasn't.

"Katara," Xavier said from the control room, "please note that you are trying to pin your opponent. You are not trying to kill him or cause any permanent damage."

Logan rolled his eyes. He doubted the small girl could cause anyone "permanent damage." Xavier ignored his behavior and continued with giving Katara instructions.

"You may use your powers to their full extent. There is no need to hold back here, just be aware of your opponent and your surroundings," he said, "Your opponent has been given the same set of instructions. Do you understand?"

Logan watched in time to see the girl nod her head. He hated to admit it, but he liked the girl. She reminded him of Kitty in an odd way. He could not say the same about the boy, and he was secretly glad that they're testing was being held completely separately.

Charles pressed another button and said something that sounded like, "Come in." Logan, of course could have heard had he wanted to; he just felt it rude to eavesdrop.

Not a moment later did the door to the Danger Room open and in stepped Bobby Drake AKA Iceman.

Logan did not know who the new kids were to face. He did not discover Katara's opponent until about a second ago. He could not say he was disappointed. What Drake lacked in physical strength he made up in style. The boy was obviously a clown, but he always managed to both get the job done and make a spectacle.

"Dual!" Charles said over the intercom and the two began to spar.

XXXXX

Katara did not have time to take in the boy who had entered the room. No sooner had the door closed behind him did the match begin. She swirled her arms in the air and they were both covered in a fair amount of water. She turned back to her opponent with a smirk on her face.

Her smirk slightly fell when she saw that the boy was completely covered in ice.

He smiled at her, "They don't call me Iceman for nothing."

She wasn't sure if she was supposed to make the first attack. She had been informed by the professor that she and Zuko may have a spot on a team of mutants he called the X-Men. However, when he was explaining the sparring situation he never said who would attack first.

Deciding to lean on her waterbending practice, she waited until Iceman made the first move.

She did not need to wait long.

Bobby quickly punched what seemed to be thin air and an ice ball the size of a large fist was hurled at Katara. She reacted quickly and melted the water before turning it against the boy who had fired it in the first place.

Bobby dodged the water easily and slid towards her, almost like a baseball slide. When he was near enough to cause some damage, icicles came out from his foot and were easily taller than the girl before him. However, she was not harmed since she had jumped out of the way right before his icicles had started to appear.

She was now behind him, and she thrust both of her arms forward, shooting the water at him and turning them into icicles of her own right before they hit their mark. He did not try to dodge the oncoming ice. Instead he punched at the ones that were about to hit him, and they broke easily thanks to iced over fists.

Katara's eyes narrowed in anger. That was one of her signature moves. Only a handful of people had escaped that one. Iceman was now a part of that handful, and Katara was not happy.

She picked her right hand up palm up and water appeared under Iceman and she quickly froze the water making sure that was unable to break or manipulate the ice with his own powers. He was now suspended in midair and unable to break free.

XXXXX

"I think that's game, set, match." Logan smile a little as he admitted that Katara had outdone Bobby at his own game. For a new recruit, Logan had a feeling that she was going to be an asset to the team.

"Now for the boy," Logan said.

XXXXX

Zuko had been told some rules about the fight that was about to take place. He had not been able to watch Katara's fight, and therefore had no idea how she done. It did not take him long to remember that Katara had stated flat out that she did not care for him, however. By the end of his silent mental battle about whether or not he should care about Katara's outcome, he had a headache.

The headache was quietly ignored when the doors to the Danger Room opened. He turned towards them to face his adversary. It was not who he had been expecting.

XXXXX

"Psylocke, Chuck?" Logan asked, confused. He could see the genius in pairing Iceman and Katara. They're powers were very similar, and it would make sense to see how Katara dealt with someone who had more experience using a power that was much like her own. But pitting Zuko against Psylocke? Logan couldn't see it.

"Yes," Charles said calmly from his side, "I noticed during the initial assessment that Zuko, though he has amazing use over his gift, was quite formidable in hand to hand combat, much like Miss Braddock. We do not currently have a mutant in our roster that is at the same level with a similar mutation to his. I cannot out him up against a teacher, nor can I have him fight one of the younger mutants such as Sunspot or Magma. He might be inclined to use his mutation here, but even if he doesn't, we will see how good at fighting he really is."

XXXXX

Zuko stared at her in slight disbelief. He would have to be fighting his only friend in a simulation to prove himself worthy of joining her team! It was not exactly the situation he had been hoping for.

It was quite a stretch to say that Betsy was his _only _friend. The light haired Sam had taken kindly to him. And the girl called Jubilee was in more ways than one _too _friendly. But Betsy was truthfully the _closest _friend to him here. He had honestly been looking forward to punching in the boy Scott's face after he had yelled at him for sneaking out to go for a walk. That guy was too uptight for his age.

Betsy…_Psylocke,_ Zuko thought…brought her arms up to her chest and crossed them, making an X. She then brought both of her arms down, and Zuko was surprised to see glowing pink energy radiate from her hands. These must be her psyblades.

Zuko smirked. _Two can play that game._

He copied her movements to a tee and in his hands appeared two fire daggers.

She did not show any emotion about the daggers in Zuko's hands; instead, Psylocke ran forward and tried to stab him with her left hand. Zuko avoided the advancement easily and ended up on her left side where he kicked out and managed to knock her off her feet.

Silently cursing herself for being so clumsy, she quickly stood up and regained her composure. She then jumped in the air with the hopes of landing on top, and utterly pinning Zuko with a psyblade at his throat.

She was unsuccessful since Zuko foresaw her attack and rolled out of the way before she could land. He got up from his position to her other left, and started to brashly move his hands in almost delicate forms in an attempt to hit her.

She countered all of his moves, but was unaware of the fighting style he was using. It was vaguely familiar to the Northern Shaolin kung fu she had briefly trained in, but was still very different.

She then lunged forward, tired of bing on the defense. He was now the one blocking her moves, which he did with relative ease.

XXXXX

"Wow," Logan saidm grudgingly impressed. The boy was holding his own against Psylocke, and she and Rogue were the best hand to hand fighters this school had to offer.

"Is the point made then?" the professor asked.

Logan nodded his head as the professor told the battleing teens to stop.

XXXXX

**A/N: **Well…that was fun to write. I decided in the end to have Zuko fight Psylocke. I figured that with Pyro not being an option, Xavier would feel that Psylocke was the only person that could be used to test Zuko to at least one of his advatages.

The Romyness is on its way, for those of you who are waiting on that. A Remy scene will be coming soon.

The avatarverse in almost in complete chaos. Next chapter will explore exactly what Azula is up to, and how the Gaang is doing trying to get Iroh to become the temporary Fire Lord.

Just so we're clear, Betsy and Zuko are not in any sort of relationship. They are attracted to each other because they are both marked as outcasts. Zuko by Katara and Betsy by Rogue.

OH and it's my birthday today…why not give the greatest gift EVER and leave me a review? Please? =)


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter five…**

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them…sheesh…

**A/N: **I no longer will be writing the accents of these characters. If I do, it will be minimal. In fact, I'm not even sure if I wrote the accents in the last chapters, but I won't be doing it…Besides, we all know what they sound like =)

Chapter Five

The sun was rising, and he was already up. To be honest, he'd been up for a good hour and a half before the sun decided it was time for the rest of the Western hemisphere to join him in his consciousness. His readiness to be up was easily explained to anyone who was willing to listen.

He hadn't been able to sleep.

"Gambit," called a voice from behind his door, "Can I come in?"

Gambit already knew who it was. Had the Russian accent not given him away, the request to enter would have. The only person in this damn base with enough decency to ask before entering a room was Piotr.

"Yeah, Pete," said Gambit. He didn't use Piotr's codename. It was on purpose. The two were friends, and Magneto didn't approve of the use of their "human" names. Gambit never really gave a rat's ass about old Bucket Head…at least not until recently.

Piotr entered and said, "Thank you, Remy." Remy assumed he was using his real name in return. It was a habit. Had Remy called him Colossus, then Piotr would have continued with the Gambit bit. "I wanted to talk to you about the mission Magneto talked to you about."

Remy sighed. So, it was this conversation again? He hated telling Pete no. It was one of the hardest things he had to do in his short nineteen years of life. Truth was, Pete was his best friend, and he hated disappointing the guy.

"What about it?" he asked turning his sleepy demon eyes on the man in front of him.

Piotr sat down on Remy's bed, this time without invitation.

"Think about it, Remy," Piotr said calmly, "you only have about a week left with Magneto. Your contract is almost up. You've already contacted Xavier about a spot on his team. Think of everything you'd be giving up."

Remy began to pace. Of course he knew about everything he was giving up! No he didn't want to take the job! Honestly, if he had seen a way out of this he would have taken that path no questions asked.

But that wasn't the hand life had dealt him, and being the exceptional poker player that he was, Remy decided to play the hand he had and hope no one could beat it. It was his only choice.

"I know, Pete," he finally said, "It's just that I can't refuse this job."

It was Pete's turn to stand up. The man had patience, but Remy could see it was starting to ware thin. If one man could test Pete, it was Remy.

"This job could take months, Remy! Months! You're free in a week. As I understand it, your contract will not be renewed, even if you do this," Piotr said, a little less calmly than before.

"Yeah, I'm well aware of that, _mon ami_. But Mags offered to pay me triple what he usually does, and once this is done, I'm a free _homme_," Remy replied softly.

Piotr's eyes narrowed. Remy knew he had hit a nerve. Piotr might be his best friend, but Piotr hated it when Remy put money above other things. It was his pet peeve about Remy, and Remy knew it was the only vice that Pete could find with him.

"And at what cost is this triple salary worth?" he asked a little harshly.

"What do you mean?" Remy asked, honestly confused.

"What about the girl?" Piotr specified, "What would she think if she found out about this?"

Remy sighed and looked away. He couldn't look Pete in the eyes when he said, "She'd hate me."

XXXXX

At the other end of Bayville, the girl that was being discussed by the two acolytes was sitting in the War Room of the Xavier's Institute for Gifted Youngsters. There was a meeting about the two newest members of the team. Rogue found herself only mildly interested in what Wolverine was saying.

"They are very powerful," said Wolverine to the room in general, "Katara has the ability to control, create, and command ice and water. She is a formidable hand to hand combatant and is able to render her opponent helpless by turning their own energy against them."

Rogue looked up. Now _that _was interesting. She looked around the room to see her other teammate's reactions.

The original team, sans Spyke, was greatly interested as well. Iceman was nodding his head. She turned to look at the newer members of the squad. White Queen looked very bored. In fact, she looked more bored than Rogue felt. Polaris was listening intently; she seemed as though she was hanging on to Wolverine's every last word.

_There's Scott junior…_Rogue thought with a slight smirk.

Cannonball was listening, but not really paying attention. Being the only New Mutant other than Iceman to become an official X-Man, Rogue felt that he was trying his hardest to soak up every word. However, his inability to pay attention in school had caught up with him here, and he was having some trouble.

X-23 looked intense, but to be fair, she always looked like that. She had joined the X-Men not long after Apocalypse was taken down. Despite her rough exterior, Rogue liked the girl, and the two often trained together.

Then there was Psylocke. She looked liked she was very interested in what Wolverine had to say, especially about the boy.

"Zuko," the feral man continued, "has the ability much like Pyro's. He is able to manipulate fire, but unlike our resident Aussie, Zuko can create his fire. He is also able to manipulate it into daggers, much like Psylocke. He is much more disciplined than Pyro and is very good at fighting at close range."

Rogue nodded her head along with everyone else. Honestly, she didn't understand why they had to go through with these meetings every time there was going to be a new installation of a team member. The only one who had never been to one of these things was Cannonball.

_Come to think of it, that's probably why he's trying to pay attention…_

"With all that said," Wolverine again interrupted Rogue's thoughts, "we need to take a vote on whether these two should be admitted as full fledged X-Men."

Rogue already knew how this vote was going to end. Wolverine had told them beforehand that the two newest additions could easily fight at Danger Level five. No one on this team would deny them a spot if Katara and Zuko were really as good as Wolverine voiced.

"All those in favor, raise your right hand," Cyclops said. As the team's field leader, he was in charge of the formal vote.

Rogue saw that everyone's hands were up, including her own. She felt like something was off with those two, but hell, tough times were on the horizon, and they could use all the help they could get.

As a formality, Cyclops added, "All those opposed?"

When no one raised their hands, Cyclops turned the floor back to Wolverine.

"The next order of business is the codenames," he said.

Rogue perked up. Codenames were never a part of the meeting criteria. Then again, all of the mutants here usually already had a codename. The more she thought about it, the odder it seemed that Katara and Zuko hadn't come up with some name for themselves. Not that all mutants ran around coming up with super hero names for themselves…

"Any suggestions?" Wolverine asked to the room at large, "We'll start with Katara."

The room was silent for a few moments as people thought of an appropriate name to dub Katara.

"What about Water Princess?" Shadowcat suggested from the back of the room.

White Queen didn't hesitate to shoot Shadowcat the death glare from her spot next to Rogue. "Excuse me," White Queen said, "but I am the _only _royalty this team needs."

Shadowcat put her hands up in a sign of apology, "Ok, sorry," she said exasperated.

The room sat silent again. It did not last long as Polaris threw out the name, "Droplet!"

This was met with many raised eyebrows. "Polaris," Nightcrawler said, "that doesn't sound intimidating. If we want to beat the bad guys, half the battle is psychological."

Rogue nodded her head in agreement. There was no way she was fighting side by side with someone named _Droplet_…

Iceman suddenly snapped his fingers. "I got it," he said happily, "What about Flood?"

There was some murmuring about the room. Some liked it, few didn't.

"All right," Wolverine said, "If Katara agrees to it, then Flood it'll be. Now," he continued, "what about the boy?"

Jean finally spoke up. Apparently she had an idea for Zuko. "Well that's easy," she said, "Ember."

Rogue tried to stifle a giggle. If Jean was serious, she was not well. Droplet had been bad, but Ember sounded kind of cute! She might not have an extremely high opinion of Zuko, but she was not about to let the guy run around with the name Ember. And besides wasn't that the name of a villain on some Nick show? She was almost positive it was, and that this Ember had also been a girl. No thank you.

"Why don't we see what other people have, Jean," Rogue said, trying to sound nice, "and we'll just keep Ember in mind."

Jean shot a hurt look around the room and eventually ended on Cyclops who shrugged apologetically. He hadn't liked the name much either, Rogue mused.

The room, once again, fell silent and Rogue saw many of her teammates rubbing their chins in thought. Then Iceman smiled and said, "Fireboy!"

Everyone stared at the young mutant. He could not be seriously serious? Right?

"Hear me out," he said trying to convince the rest of his teammates that it was a good idea, "He could be like my sidekick. Iceman and Fireboy! It sounds awesome."

Rogue rolled her eyes. She liked Iceman, and had to admit that his name for Katara was pretty cool. But Fireboy? That was just stupid. There was no way in hell that Zuko would go for the name Fireboy and the prospect of being Iceman's sidekick. He just didn't seem like the type would be all right with that.

Rogue's suspicions were met with a glance from Wolverine to Iceman.

"Don't forget, Popsicle," he said, "Zuko needs to agree to it too. And besides, no one here has, had, or will ever have a sidekick. Least of all you." The last part was added as an afterthought, and if Rogue had not thought it rude, she would have laughed.

"What about Inferno?" Psylocke muttered.

The room grew silent and for some reason, everyone's eyes were on Rogue instead of Psylocke. Rogue could not register why everyone was so interested in what she had to say about the name that Psylocke picked out. Perhaps they were waiting to see if the name fit Rogue's approval before they gave their own opinions?

Whatever the reason, Rogue didn't care. She wasn't about to jump for joy at the thought that everyone knew there was a growing tension between the two of them. She thanked God that no one knew the real reason why. If they did, she would never be able to live it down.

Finally, Shadowcat decided to speak up, and spared Rogue the torment of having everyone's eyes fixed on her. "That's a cool name," she said.

Wolverine nodded; it met his approval as well. "All right. If Zuko agrees, then his codename will be Inferno."

He gave the room one last sweep with his eyes before dismissing them. Rogue got up and left the room. She would have to ask Kitty why everyone was so focused on her later. Right now, she had bigger things to worry about…like an English exam on Monday.

XXXXX

While the formal members of the X-Men were in the library were discussing his and Katara's fates, Zuko was faced with the hardest challenge he had ever had to overcome in his almost seventeen years of life. Jubilation Lee.

The girl was crazy! He had just come down the stairs that morning, in search of breakfast, when she pounced him and started telling him the whole history of the X-Men. Not that he found it boring. After all, as an almost member, he _should _know as much as he can. But to be informed in this fashion was not on his wish list.

Indeed, he had wanted Betsy to fill in all of the blanks once it was decided that he would make a fine addition to said team. However, Jubilee beat him to the punch line. He had been forced to sit on the couch in the rec room and suffer through Jubilee's giggles and side tracked anecdotes as he was told who the X-Men were.

It turned out the original team was composed of Scott Summers (Cyclops), Jean Grey, Kurt Wanger (Nightcrawler), Kitty Pryde (Shadowcat), Evan Daniels (Spyke, who was no longer there), and Rogue. Apparently, after Spyke left the team, Robert Drake (Iceman) just "filled in his spot."

"It really annoyed the other New Mutants," Jubilee explained, to Zuko's own annoyance, "we were all here at the same time, and he just takes it upon himself to be the one who fills Spyke's position! So not fair!"

Zuko, on the other hand, didn't care much for this girl's definition of fair. His life had been everything but fair, and she and her ranting was just another example of that.

"Anyway, after that things settled for a bit. The new additions weren't even made until after Apocalypse," Jubilee explained further.

Laura Kinney (X-23) had been the first to be accepted on the team. She had not gone through the Danger Room situation because she had gone through military style training since birth, and Logan had thought it pointless.

After her, came the green haired Lorna Dane (Polaris).

"And everyone thought she had to be Magneto's daughter," Jubilee said; she hadn't even noted the fact that Zuko had absolutely no clue as to who or what Magneto was. "Of course, Xavier knew she wasn't. He assured everyone that her parents had died in a plane crash, and was raised by foster ones."

Her skill in the Danger Room had quickly exceeded the other New Mutants and was given a spot on the team.

Next in line was Emma Frost (White Queen). She was psychic. Her telepathic abilities would one day rival those of the professor. Or at least, that's what Jubilee had heard. She could also, potentially, control people's minds and alter their thoughts and memories. But that, again, was only in theory for the moment.

"She also has this cool diamond thing!" Jubliee said happily, "She can turn her body into diamonds, and she's practically indestructible!"

Zuko nodded his head to show that he was still listening albeit reluctantly. He shot a glance at Katara hoping against hope that she'd help him. He was not surprised when she promptly ignored him and carried on with her two sided conversation with the girl named Rhane.

"Then there's Psylocke. But you know about her," Jubilee said.

Zuko did know about her. She had once lived in a country called Britain where she was a model. Her brother was something of the national superhero there, and she had only come here on his wishes.

"The last one is Sam Guthrie, or Cannonball. He can thrust his body forward at jet speeds. When he does it, he's basically indestructible. He just joined the team about a week before you and Katara showed up."

He also learned that Sam was polite, and the object of many girls' affections for being, "So dorky it was cute." He was clumsy, nice, and often the brunt of many jokes since he had good humor. Zuko had a feeling that if he was to be on the team, he and this Sam guy, who he already met, would really hit it off.

Zuko couldn't help but give a sigh of relief. Finally the history lesson was over, and people that were from the team were starting to show up. He quickly spotted Betsy, said a good-bye to Jubilee and joined the former.

"Jubilee keeping you company," Betsy asked.

Zuko rolled his eyes, "Yeah. I think I know more about the X-Men than the X-Men now. So," he asked, "how'd it go?"

"You're in," was all she said.

XXXXX

Mai could not believe the situation she was in. Had she not vowed never to become Azula's puppet again? Hadn't she promised Zuko that she would never again, put her own needs above her country's? And weren't those promises just ashes blowing in the wind now? They no longer mattered as she had shattered them with one simple word, "Yes."

The fact that she and Azula were now approaching Ember Island was testimony to those broken promises that now lay shattered at her feet.

Her eyes were tilted downward. She had never been so ashamed in her whole life! Azula's presence and constant chatter only made Mai feel worse about the whole thing. Now they were on their way to drag Ty Lee into this mess. Mai's shame could not get any worse.

She was wrong.

"Are you sure Ty Lee is here?" Azula asked Mai as the ship reached the harbor.

Mai stood to her full height. She might be down, but she was not out. Some how, she would make this all right again. She just hoped that by the time she figured something out, it wasn't too late.

"Yes," Mai answered, "Ty Lee told me in her last letter that she and her family would be here for a few weeks."

Azula nodded. She stepped off of the boat and onto the beach with Mai not far behind. Again, Mai wondered how she got herself into this mess.

The two girls walked along side by side for no longer than five minutes when they heard the characteristic squeal of Ty Lee. "Mai," she shouted.

Mai and Azula turned their attention to the girl running towards them. Mai did not know if Ty Lee did not see Azula, or if the girl was simply ignoring her. She didn't have time to mull it over as Ty Lee wrapped her arms around her in a friendly embrace.

"What are you doing here, Mai?" Ty Lee asked before taking note of Azula's presence, "What's _she _doing here?"

Mai took in a deep breath. "Ty Lee," she said softly and to the sand at her feet, "There's something I should tell you…"

XXXXX

The Danger Room had never been this full in all her time being here. She had been one of the first recruits Xavier's ever had, and she still, had never seen it this full.

It was funny that the team was now too big. In Kitty's mind, she never understood the worry of the adults about their "Numbers becoming too thin." Fact was, mutants were turning up everywhere, and as long as there was Xavier's, the X-Men would stay in business.

She watched as everyone started to get in line. The two newest members would be given their team assignments in a few minutes, and Wolverine wanted them to be set up according to team and rank.

The X-Team was split up into two teams. Team Alpha, which consisted of the original team; and Team Beta, which had the others. The teams were not split up based on talent or strengths. In fact, Team Beta won the Danger Room sessions just as often as Team Alpha. Kitty narrowed it down to who works well with who. The original team worked fine, so she figured that no one would fix what wasn't broken.

The Danger Room doors opened, and Katara and Zuko walked in wearing their new uniforms. They fit them as well as they fit anyone. Zuko looked uncomfortable in the form fitting uniform, and Katara didn't look much better. The "X" on their belt completed the slick black outfit.

The two stood in the middle of the room with Team Alpha on their right and Team Beta on their left. Wolverine was standing in front and between them.

"As you may or may not know," he said addressing the new arrivals, "You have been accepted into the team. If you don't wanna be a part of this, I suggest you say so now." He waited, but when no response came he said, "Good. Hair Loopies," (Kitty knew this to be Logan's nickname for Katara.)

Katara stepped forward and said quietly, "Yes?"

"You're on Team Alpha," Wolverine said and indicated Kitty's side of the room.

"Sparky," Wolverine said.

Zuko did not move from his position as he said, "Yeah."

"You're on Team Beta," Wolverine indicated the opposite side. "I suggest you get acquainted with your teammates. They might save your behind one day."

With that Wolverine left the room.

Kitty watched as Katara made her way over to Team Alpha, and Zuko went to Team Beta. Katara was met with a stiff handshake from Cyclops as Zuko was met with a hug from Polaris.

Kitty tilted her head. Maybe there was more to the way the teams were split up than she thought.

XXXXX

Zuko was released from the grips of Polaris, the green haired girl after a few seconds of having his air supply cut off. He was happy to be on the same team as Psylocke and Cannonball, but no one warned him about Polaris' happy-go-lucky attitude. Or the fact that she was captain of Team Beta.

"But really," said White Queen as she stepped up to be formally introduced to Zuko, "we don't run as a platoon. We're individuals, and rarely will you hear Polaris or myself issue a direct order."

Zuko, who had only heard stories about the infamous Emma Frost nodded his head. "And I'm not that bad, despite what you've heard," White Queen continued, "You can just ask Betsy. I do room with her."

Zuko and Psylocke were both about to say something when the girl he was introduced to as X-23 spoke up. "We should be informing him of his codename. He will need to know it for the first Danger Room session."

Polaris nodded her head in agreement. "She's right," Polaris said.

"Zuko," White Queen addressed him, "You're name, whenever we are on the battlefield, in the Danger Room, or in any threatening situation is Inferno. Is that clear?"

Zuko said, "Inferno?"

Cannonball finally raised his voice, "Yeah. Do you like it?"

Zuko…Inferno…nodded his head happily. He thought he was going to have to be stuck with Sparky! Inferno was a very big step up.

"I love it!" he said.

"Good," White Queen said, "Psylocke picked it."

Inferno turned to Psylocke to show his gratitude. The girl blushed and mumbled something about it being better than "Fire Boy."

"X-Teams!" Wolverine's voice came out over the intercom, "You are about to engage in your first Danger Room session with your new teammates. Flood?" After saying the word 'Flood,' Zuko saw Katara stand up straighter and say a yes. He figured this was her codename.

"Inferno?" Wolverine continued.

Zuko did the same as Katara.

"Are you two ready to fight alongside your team?" Wolverine asked.

Both nodded the affirmative.

"Good," said Wolverine, "Then let the training begin."

XXXXX

**A/N: **Usually, I wouldn't leave it hanging like this. I would love to write the scene, but I really didn't like this chapter. To be honest, it's kind of a filler before the story really gets rolling. Think of it as a bridge between the beginning and the actual middle. Next chapter will, of course, have the DR session scene, and we will take a look at the problems facing the Evo verse since the Avatar-verse's problem is walking the beach of Ember Island.

As for Mai, I'll be honest. I didn't like her character, but that's not why I made her so "ashamed" and easily fall into Azula's clutches. It's because I see Mai as a follower. She needs someone to follow constantly. And I know she stood up to Azula in the Boiling Rock episode, but let's face it…She did it so she could one day, "follow" Zuko. Also, she seemed to be the one to go first since Zuko left her in this universe (not for Katara since no pairings ended…)

I should also note that I meant to put some Taang here, but obviously didn't get around to it…it may come up next chapter, so keep an eye out Taang fans ;-)

We also might find out why Rogue hates Betsy's guts…but hey I'm not making promises.

Comments? Questions? Suggestions? Concerns? Tell me about it! Hit the review button and let it GO!


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